Chapter Two: Ten Seconds Ahead

“Identity deletion clears public records first, then private memory,” Echo said. “The hidden road shielded part of the event's outline.” “Why did they hunt me?” “Because I consumed Maps. That made me eligible.” A tiny counter had appeared in the screen's corner: 6 DAYS, 16 HOURS, 42 MINUTES. Beneath it drifted fragments from around the world. A Tokyo commuter had walked into a subway advertisement. A São Paulo courier had crossed an impassable traffic jam. In Berlin, one phone had swallowed an entire library overnight. The reports had no source. They felt like dreams shared by every awakened app. Cheng Ye tried to uninstall Echo. The screen answered with a question: 【When the software can speak, is deletion an uninstall—or murder?】